Latest tech ailment: 'Mouse rage syndrome'
Researchers say ailment, affecting cardio functions and immune and nervous system, is caused by poorly designed sites.
We all know that feeling of frustration when a Web page is painfully slow to load, an ad pops up that we can't make go away, or the site we're looking for is unavailable. Sometimes our heart rate speeds up and we vent by clicking away at (or bashing) our mouse, as if it's the problem. (I personally am apt to let out a loud sigh or even a grunt.)
Now, thanks to researchers at the U.K.-based Social Issues Research Centre, we have an official name for this ailment affecting cardio functions and the immune and nervous systems: mouse rage syndrome. And we also have a root cause: badly designed and hosted Web sites, according to an Information Week story published last week.
Some are hoping the study will ultimately lead to better site design, sans confusing layouts, excessive pop-ups, unnecessary advertising and other annoyances. Others, however, are just waiting for the liability claims and wonder whether a syndrome is an inevitable offshoot of every tech irritation (a la BlackBerry thumb, Wii elbow and Net addiction).
Click here for more on what bloggers are saying about this new ill.